fiction – Page 3 – 2Shades Magazine

Heidi Gammon, 2Shades and Gateway Radio’s agony aunt, answers your questions this Pride month.

Dear Heidi

I stumbled upon your column by accident. My daughter Is gay, and I have found it very hard to accept. First of all, I am catholic, and her lifestyle is not acceptable to my faith.

Trust me Heidi I love my daughter, but I am really struggling to accept her girlfriend who she has lived with for four years and won’t have her in the house. She looks like a man, and I find it embarrassing when people see her. My daughter says that they plan to have children and that breaks my heart. Now she says she won’t see me if I do not accept her life and partner. Having tried counselling already what can I do? Losing my daughter is not an option.

Vicky, South End

Dear Vicky

This makes me very sad. Please be assured I have total respect for others’ beliefs. It is great you tried counselling but maybe you did not go the right one. With all due respect, everything you are saying is homophobic. If you truly love your daughter, you will embrace her and love her as a mother should. Who cares what people think of the person who loves your daughter? You need to respect who your daughter is. Really, I understand your pain but it’s time to let go of that mindset. Who wants to be around someone who judges and discriminates against them, especially when it is a person that is supposed to love them? It may be an idea to try counselling as a family https://www.rainbow-project.org/family-support/

You will lose your daughter if you continue down this path.

All my best, Heidi

Dear Heidi

Please help me, I did a terrible thing. My husband wanted to spice things up and bring another person into the bedroom. He did not want an open relationship so, with trepidation we went ahead with a guy we met online. It was fun and we saw him a few times.

Really Heidi I thought that was it but having bumped into this guy in town, we started to see each other behind my husband’s back as he said he’s not really into him. He has asked me to go on holiday with him. Having agreed and telling my husband it is work related, now I am getting cold feet. What can I do?

Mike, Brighton

https://www.grindr.com/blog/wild-sex-positions

Oh, my dear Mike, what a mess.

Really, I am all for those who want to try different things but boundaries must be in place after a lengthy conversation. Although it’s not for me, many couples have open relationship and experiment. When you invite another person into your relationship you are opening a pandora’s box. Be careful what you wish for I say.

It sounded like you thought you were happy. Bringing someone else in could have unearthed that your relationship may not have been what you thought. The fact you’re even thinking of going on holiday behind your husband’s back tells me things are not right. It is time to ask yourself how you see your future. Time to sit down and talk to your husband, after all he opened the box leading you to want to deceive and break the trust. Without trust there is no relationship. Sorry if that sounds harsh.

Love Heidi

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/b006xyhv/gimme-gimme-gimme

Dear Heidi,

My gay brother is a hoot, but he won’t stop flirting with straight guys.Now he is flirting with my husband. Alex my husband thinks it is funny but it is annoying and embarrassing for me. Having put my foot down my brother is not speaking to me. What can I do?

Kirsty, Essex

You’re kidding me, Kirsty. You’re quiet right, straight or gay, there is a limit to the flirting game and you have every right to be annoyed. It was right to share your feelings.

It sounds like your brother is a bit of an exhibitionist and they can be fun. Exhibitionism can be a drug and you can get hooked. He needs to think of your feelings too. Trust me he will be back in touch. You sound like a great sister so just ignore him till he comes to you (and he will) . But stick to your guns when he does appear licking his wounds.

Love Heidi

Dear Heidi

Love the column, please can you help me? I am so frightened to ask anyone out as my fear of rejection is so great. No-one asks me out and so my life has no one romantic in it. How can overcome my fear?

Love

Andy, Leeds

Andy my love, my heart goes out to you. Ok I need you to shake yourself down.

You can go to an lGBTQQ+ councillor https://pinktherapy.com or if you cannot afford that, the NHS offer free talking therapy sessions . I am taking it you have tried online dating; you do not have to go on GRINDER or Facebook, and many other sites offer a softer approach to dating . Or why not join an lgbtqq+ group https://www.mesmac.co.uk/our-services/leeds/support-social-groups

Here is a selection in Leeds. It is a nice way to meet people in non-sexual way that could lead to romance.

Happy Pride Andy, I hope love comes your way .

https://www.counselling-foryou.co.uk

WHY WE WILL ALL SOON BE SHOUTING “RA,RA”

Ra Ra aka Raquel Reno:The birth of a Gay Icon

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Rating: 5 out of 5

Steven Smith reviews Ra, Ra ( Raquel Reno)

Ra Ra (aka Raquel Reno) burst onto our screens when she appeared on the BBC reality TV show “Unbreakable”, alongside her formidable fiancé, Charlie Mullin OBE.

“Unbreakable” 2022 is a reality TV show that claims to have given six celebrity couples the “ultimate test” to prove they are the perfect pair. It’s “funny, relatable and occasionally terrifying”. Rob Beckett coaxes and cringes as six celeb couples compete to prove they’re the perfect pair.

Ra Ra’s now fiancee Charlie Mullin OBE proposed to her live on the reality TV show Unbreakable, back in October 2022.

On “Unbreakable” most people I know fell for the bubbly, delightful Reno right away. At first glance, Mullin and Reno may seem like a chalk and cheese pairing, however the reality is that they are a great match. They certainly made for addictive viewing, and in my humble opinion, they went out of the show far too early

On one of the show dinners, Ra Ra (That’s my favourite name for Raquel because it makes her sound like the star I believe she is!) was in conversation with Lincoln Townley ( artist and husband to Loose Women Star, Denise Welch – this pair incidentally won the show), and she announced that she was a singer who had recently travelled all the way to Nashville, Tennessee to record her first album.

Someone piped in “Go on” and RaRa promptly demonstrated her vocal talents, impressing the celebrity couples and us, the audience at home.

However, it was an improv taste of RaRa and by no means her best performance. Raquel has a rare quality and personality wise reminds me a little of ‘Barbara Windsor meets Amanda Barrie’.

There is something about the Cheltenham-born brunette that screams “Gay Icon” right away; she is adorable and makes you want to know more.

Some months after “Unbreakable”, I was privy to her upcoming EP (due out this June). It told a different story. The songs were brilliantly catchy, her voice was incredible and she brought the sixties (my favourite era) bang back to life with a twist.

You can just imagine the pet shop boys calling out to work with Reno.

With the current trend of basic singers being made to sound like Divas by technology, I did wonder how Ra Ra would stand up to a live performance. Did it really matter? We had all fallen for Ra Ra anyway.

I was lucky enough to be invited to her first London concert of 2023, at the intimate and delightful QT bar at Middle Eight Hotel in Covent Garden, where everything about the venue screamed 60’s.

I felt sure the Kray boys and Danny la Rue were going to walk in any minute.

Ra Ra’s first EP is coming out in June. Watch this space!

Ra Ra was supported by her three backing singers and a band worthy of the London Palladium. Not being unkind, but initially I did think that this might be to cover up the fact that she is not as strong vocally. Certainly, when she came on stage you rooted for her, but nerves kicked in and the first number was not as amazing as I think the perfectionist that is Raquel would have wanted it to be. However, as she warmed up, the audience began to realise that we were looking at a real super star in the making. We were all brought to our feet in applause. Her vocal range was an unstoppable powerhouse that could bring the roof down.

What is so endearing is how humble Ra-Ra is about her own talent. She is a team player with her band, and she is a writer and an incredible singer, but there is something about her that says she still wonders “How did I get here?!” despite already performing in China and Dubai. It is this vulnerability that Raquel channels to her audience that will make her a huge hit amongst the LGBTQ community. She has fought to get where she is now and just like Judy, Liza and Amy, she has a story to tell, and she is not afraid to show how it feels to believe in who she is.

Certainly, she evokes the feeling of icons like Dusty Springfield and Cilla Back, without imitating them.

Ra-Ra takes time to talk to her audience and that adds to the charm of the evening, thanking her grandmother and apologising for being a hurricane when she comes round. Her grandmother, who was staying at the Savoy Hotel for the night, almost burst with pride, “Raquel brings happiness wherever she goes”, and you really believe her.

Raquel is worthy of the Palladium next time.

Let’s hope she sees what we all saw tonight: a true star who still looks like she would pop the kettle on for her gran or anyone else that she met.

If there was any criticism to a flawless show, I would say Raquel, you’re the star: get that hair out of your beautiful face, channel your inner Pricilla Presley or another 60’s icon of your choice. I cannot wait to see what you do next.

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